Automatic drifting-valve for locomotives.



v. P. Mcvov.

AUTOMATIC DRIFTING VALVE FOR LOCOMOTIVES. APPLICATION FILED sEPT.22. |915.

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vINcEN P. Mevov, or MOBILE, ALABAMA, AssIGNon or ONE-HALF 'ro JOSEPH M.

' WALSH, or MOBILE, ALABAMA.

AUTOMATIC DRIFTING-VALVE FOR LOCOMOTIVES.

Lafeber.

Specication of Letters Patent.

Patented Feb. 13, 1917.

Appli-cation filed September 22, 1915. Serial No. 51,991.

known as drifting valves for locomotives,

and it has for its objects among others to provide a simple and reliable automatic relief valve for use primarily on super-heating locomotives whereby l obviate the formation of carbon in the cylinders, steam ports and passages thereof. By my construction I also relieve'the cylinders of any vacuum caused` by the reciprocating parts as well as eliminating air inlet valves., and prolonging the life of such reciprocating parts, by keeping them lubricated with saturated steam while the engine is drifting, or in other words while the engine is in lively motion without using the throttle.

I provide a valve automatic in its action and embodyingV aV piston operated upward by vacuum and downward by pressure.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will hereinafter appear and the novel features thereof will be particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

The invention is clearly illustrated in the accompanying drawing which represents a substantially central section through my improved valve. Y Referring to the drawings, 1 designates the body portion of Athe valve,V or the casing having inlet 2 from the boiler to the chamber 3 upon one side of the partition 4 and an outlet 5 from the chamber 6 upon'the opposite side of said partition tothe engine.

7 is a check valve adapted to a seat 8 on said partition 4; and controlling communication between the chambers 3 Vand 6.

9 is a piston carried by and movable with said check valve and disposed above the same, as shown.

10 is a pilot valve carried by a stem 11 and tted to a seat 12 on thepiston 9, a spring 13 being employed and interposed between the said pilot valve and the cap or dome 14 and retained in position in any of the well-known ways, said spring lbeing arranged within the cavity 15 at the upper end of the valve casing, the cap portion 14 being removably secured in any well-known way Vpermitting ready access to the spring and pilot valve when necessary.

The check valve 7 has a depending annular portion 16 providedfwith one or more substantially trapezoidal openings 17 while 1S are ports or passages leading from the chamber 19 extended above the valve 7 and between the same and the piston 9 and communicating with the interior of the depending portion 16 of the check valve.

, That portion of the stem l1 adjacent to and just below the pilot valve 10 is formed with an annular reduced portion 20 forming communication between the cavity 15 and the chamber 19 when the pilot valve is vraised from its seat.

21 is a piston movable within the chamber 22 of the valve casing, being disposed below the check valve 7 and being of greater area than the upper piston 9. as will be evident from an inspection of the drawing.

`This lower piston carries a check valve 23 adapted to a seat 24 within the casing 1 and depending from this check valve is a skirt 25 having ports or passages 26, as shown. This depending skirt is adapted to recipro cate within the chamber 27, as shown, and extending upwardly within this skirt is a stem 28 movable through a packing box or gland 29 and carrying at its lower end a by-pass valve 30 tted to a seat 31 on the partition 32 separating the chambers 33 and 34. A spring 35 acting upon this valve 30 tends to normally keep it to its seat.

36 is a screw-threaded stem passing through the packing box or gland 37 and screw-threaded, as at 38, so as to be adjustable within the portion 39 which supports said gland whereby the tension of the spring 35 may be adjusted as circumstances may require and in accordance with the pressure.

rlf'he stem 28 just above the valve 30 is circumferentially reduced, as shown at 40, so as to permit of a free passage through the opening 41 in the partition 32 when the valve 30 is moved from its seat.

42 are by-pass manifolds affording Cominunication between the inlet 2 and the chamber 34 upon one side of the partition and between the chamber 33 upon the opposite side of said partition and the outlet 5 to the engine. The ends of the manifolds are connected in any suitable manner, their adjacent ends being shown as flanged, as at 43, and abutting against flanges 44 on the outer ends of the nipples or the like 45 eX- tending in opposite directions from the casing 4G, which latter is detachably connected with the depending portion 47 of the casing 1, as seen at 48.

With the parts constructed and arranged substantially as hereinbefore described and as shown in the drawing, the operation,- brieily stated, is as follows In connecting up this valve to an engine, the threaded nipple 49 is adapted to receive a steam pipe (not shown) of suitable size leading from the saturated steam space at any suitable location while the nipple 50 at the opposite side of the valve is screwthreaded for outlet Connections to a suitable location in the steam pipe or steam pipes anywhere between the throttle and slide valve of the engine, so that when the boiler is under steam pressure the pressure will lie on the check valve 7 holding it tightly to its seat and eq'ualizing through the piston 9, thus making the same pressure above as below and, consequently, the said valve will lie tightly against its seat 8. It will be understood that steam pressure is admitted to the space above the piston 9 to close the valve 7 by reason of the piston being a loose fit in its cylinder. The same pressure enter'- ing through the inlet 2 will also pass through the adjacent manifold 42, forcing the by-pass valve 30 tightly against its seat while the engine is standing still and the throttle shut olf. As soon as the operator or engineer opens his throttle, the pressure from the same will back in the connection 5 and will cause the piston 21 to move downward, opening the by-pass valve 30 which will admit or allow a small portion of steam to pass around the main portion of the valve through one of the manifolds 42 from the chamber 34 to the chamber 33 and thence through the other manifold 42 to the engine throughthe outlet 5. The piston 21, by its ontinued downward movement, forces the check 23 against its seat 24, making a. tight joint and the valve remains in this position so long as the throttle is open or the engine is moving by piston pressure, causing a flow ofl steam through the manifolds Aand bypasses in the direction of the arrows shown thereon in the drawings, which keeps the condensation out of the line of pipe from the boiler to the valve at 2.

When the engine has reached the height of the engineers desired speed, the throttle is instantly shut olf so that insteadV of having a pressure on the valve in the connection 5, we have a vacuum produced by the moving pistons which causes a displacement in the connection 5, forcing the piston 21 upward, allowing the pressure in the cavity 15 to exhaust through the pilot valve in the direction of the arrows through the passages or ports 18 and through the trapezoidal opening or openings 17 in the depending portion 16 of the check valve 7, which causes the pressure in the chamber 3 of the valve to be greater on the piston 9 than it is on the check 7, thuscausing the piston to move it upward, carrying the cheek 7 in the same direction, moving it from its seat, thus allowing the pressure in said chamber 3 to pass downward through the trapezoidal openings 17, as indicated by the arrows and out from the chamber 6 into the outlet 5, which would satisfy or compensate for the vacuum or the displacement of the air caused by the reciprocating parts of the engine while this portion of the valve is in operation. 1t will be noted that the piston 21 has to be moved upward instead of downward. It, therefore, would relieve the bypass valve stem 28 when the spring 35 would move the same upward against its seat, thus shutting off communication between the chambers 34 and 33, stopping the flow of steam through the by-pass valve while the main valve is in operation. When the engine comes to a stop, the boiler pressure will be on the valve in the chamber 3, but there will be no pressure above normal and no vacuum in the chamber 6. Therefore,-there can be no leaks through the check 7 or through the by-pass valve as they are both automatically shut olf.

1t will be noted that the boiler pressure lies on the top of both valves and that the chamber 6 is subject to pressure and vacuum at different times, the pressure being due from the throttle andthe vacuum caused by displacement of the moving piston against the steam pipe. The vacuum lifts the piston 21 which causes its upward movement and when the throttle is open pressure from the same on the piston 5 causes the by-pass operation.

The small portion of steam that is bypassed through the passage in the partition rio ley-pass manifolds a2, 42, the pressure from the boiler side being always greater than that on the engine side, the water of condensation is constantly carried through the manifolds to the engine so that no accumulation of water to any extent occurs.

By the use of my valve as hereinbefore described, the condensation is lrept out of the pipe connecting the valve to the boiler so that when the throttle is shut off and the engine in motion, which would cause vacuum, the main valve will pump steam into the cylinders to satisfy the vacuum, instead of water which, without the presence of the bypass, would accumulate.

It is also to be noted that the vacuum lifts the piston 21 which causes the upward movement thereof, and when the throttle is open pressure through opening 5 acting on piston 21 causes the downward operation.

As seen at 51, there is a small opening or exhaust passage which admits of an outlet from the lower portion below the piston 21 beneath the check valve 23 through the passages 26 in order to give exhaust or vent when the piston is in motion.

Modifications in detail may be resorted to without departing from the spirit of the invention or sacrificing any of its advantages.

What is claimed as new is 1. In a drifting valve, a piston actuated by vacuum or pressure, and check valves upon opposite sides of, independent of, and both actuated by said piston.

2. In a drifting valve, a piston actuated by vacuum or pressure, and check valves upon opposite sides of, independent of, and both actuated by said piston, said valves having their stems in alinement. Y

3. In a drifting valve for locomotives, a piston operable in one direction by pressure and in the opposite direction by vacuum, and check valves upon opposite sides of, independent of, and both actuated by said piston.

4C. In a drifting valve for locomotives, a piston operable in one direction by pressure and in the opposite direction by vacuum, check valves upon opposite sides of and both controlled by said piston, and a bypass valve operable by the downward movement of said piston.

5. In a drifting valve for locomotives, a piston movable in one direction by pressure and in the opposite direction `by vacuum, a check valve upon one side of the piston operable thereby, a by-pass for the water of condensation, and a valve upon the opposite side of the piston operable thereby and controlling said by-pass.

6. In a drifting valve for locomotives, a piston movable in one direction by pressure and in the opposite direction by vacuum, a. check valve upon one side of the piston operable thereby, a by-pass for the water of condensation, and a valve upon the opposite side of the piston operable thereby and Y controlling said by-pass, said valves having their stems in axial alinement with each other and with said piston` 7. In a drifting valve for locomotives, a piston operable in one direction by pressure and in the opposite direction by vacuum, a check valve actuated by said piston, a pilot valve also operable by the movement of saidpiston, a by-pass for the water of condensation, and al by-pass valve operable by saidpiston.

8. In a drifting valve for locomotives, a piston operable in one direction by pressure and in the opposite direction by vacuum, a check valve actuated by said piston, a pilot valve also operable by the movement of said i piston, a by-pass for the water of condensation, and a by-pass valve operable by said piston, all of said valves being in alinement.

9. In a drifting valve for locomotives, a check valve, a by-pass, a by-pass valve for the water of condensation, and a piston interposed between and independent of Said valves and operable in one direction by vacuum and in the opposite direction by pressure.

10. In a drifting valve for locomotives, a check valve and a piston mounted for movement together and the check valve provided with a depending portion having trapezoidal openings to admit steam gradually, a pilot valve movable at times with said piston, and a second piston operable by vacuum and controlling the movement of said pilot valve.

11. In a drifting valve for locomotives, pistons of different areas movable independently of each other, a by-pass for the water of condensation, a check valve movable with one of the pistons and a by-pass valve movable with the other.

12. In a drifting valve for locomotives, pistons of different areas movable independently of each other, a by-pass for the Water of condensation, a cheek valve movable with one of the pistons, a by-pass valve movable with the other, and a pilot valve controlled by the movement of the other piston all of said valves being in alinement.

13. In a valve of the character stated, separated movable pistons, a check valve carried by one piston, a by-pass valve carried by the other piston and by-pass manifolds for the water of condensation between the inlet to and the outlet from the casing of said valve.

14. In a valve of the character stated, separatedV movable pistons, a check valve carried by one piston, a by-pass valve carried by the other piston and by-pass manifolds for the water of condensation between the inlet to and the outlet from the casing of valve casing, a piston therein movable in one direction by Vacuum and in the other direction by pressure, Valves upon opposite sides of said piston and movable in unison therewith and means for automatically controlling the flow of the Water of condensa- 10 tion from the inlet to the outlet side of said Casing.

n testimony Whereoi:l I allix my signature in presence of tWo Witnesses.

VINCEN P.MoVOY. Witnesses:

STEPHEN A. CARLIN, GEssNER T. MCCORVEY.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for ve cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, ZD. C. 

